Merlin's Cave
by Witherwings01
Summary: A Chonks one-shot for an Iron-fic challenge. Charlie and Tonks are bored. What will happen when they go looking for a little adventure. Rated T for one word.


**A/N - **_This story was born out of an Iron-fic challenge at the Teachers' Lounge. Written in less that 24 hours, the story had to include Charlie and Tonks as the main ship and a visit to an English muggle tourist attraction as the 'secret ingredient'. _

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**'Merlin's Cave'**

**by Witherwings**

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**20th April 1988**

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Nymphadora Tonks let out a commingled groan of apathy and boredom as she trailed along towards the rear of a group led by Professor Dolan – the latest in a long line of Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers to have held the post since she had started her magical education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry nearly five years earlier – as he guided them around the ruins of Tintagel Castle situated on the northern tip of the Cornish coast.

"Many muggles believe that this castle is in fact the birthplace of King Arthur," he was saying in a dull monotone that very nearly rivalled the narcolepsy-inducing drone favoured by their usual History of Magic teacher, Professor Binns. "Total nonsense of course," he added not bothering to keep his voice down as a group of muggle tourists hurried by. "Anyone who has studied the Magical History of Britain is aware that the character of Arthur was created by Merlin as a way of deflecting attention away from himself so he wouldn't be constantly harassed by muggles looking for magical solutions to their problems ... "

Quickly losing what little interested had been piqued at the mention of Merlin, Tonks easily tuned out Dolan's dry lecture and leant closer to her best friend, Charlie Weasley. "Had I known this trip was going to be so dull, I wouldn't have pestered mum so much to sign that bloody consent form," she whispered.

Charlie's freckled face split into a wide grin. "At least we're out of school," he whispered back, managing to suppress a chuckle at his best friend's obvious boredom.

Tonks pursed her lips and bobbed her head from side to side. _There was that._

At the behest of the board of governors, who had recently decreed that it was their wish that the school should offer O.W.L. students the chance to 'experience the history of their world first hand', Professor Dumbledore had grudgingly authorised the school's first field trip in nearly two centuries.

Rumour had it that all trips had been suspended indefinitely after some sort of an incident during an one such excursion to Edinburgh in 1824 which resulted in a terrible fire that left half the city in ruins.

Given that Professor Binns had barely noticed his own death, the decision had been taken that someone with a more watchful eye should accompany the students, the task eventually falling to Tarak Dolan, the current incumbent of the Defence Against the Dark Arts position and a former Magical Law Enforcement Officer.

"What do you reckon the chances are that Old Binns hasn't even noticed we're gone?" she replied, morphing her features into a fair representation of the aged ghost's tortoise-like appearance.

Now a laugh did escape Charlie's lips; a deep rumble of a laugh that she had always so adored. "Stop it," he choked out, but it was too late ...

Turning on his heel to locate the source of the commotion, Professor Dolan's closely set eyes narrowed as his gaze settled on the two students at the very tail of the group. "Perhaps you have something to add, Mr Weasley?" he enquired with an unpleasant grin. "Or maybe you, Miss Tonks?"

Involuntarily, the two friends glanced towards one another, each wearing matching expressions of guilt before they both had the good sense to appear contrite and allow their gazes to drop to their shoes. "No professor," they chorused.

"Very well then," snapped Dolan. "But anymore foolishness and I shall return you both to Hogwarts before either of you can say boggart."

Fully aware that Professor Dolan's threat was not an idle one, for several minutes Tonks and Charlie trudged on in silence, the former attempting to catch the later's eye several times in an effort to convey her regret that she had gotten him into trouble (again).

However, either he did not want to meet her eye at that moment, or else was made oblivious to her efforts by the strong wind blowing across the rocky peninsular from the sea which frequently whipped his long hair into his face, effectively blinding him.

At length, the professor brought the group to a halt encircling the ruined foundations of what Tonks presumed must once have been a tower of some sort - not that she could hear her teacher's lecture on the subject to confirm her theory one way or the other. Truly exposed the headland as they now were, the wind had become so powerful that the professor's words were carried away and out to sea long before they reached her ears.

It was at that moment that Charlie's head snapped up: he had obviously heard something she hadn't.

"Sorry sir,' he said, his blue eyes dancing with delight in a manner that made Nymphadora's stomach perform a pathetic sort of half flip. "Did you say dragons?"

"Interested in what I have to say now, are we?" came Dolan's cool response and Tonks feared that he was about to make an example out of her best friend in retaliation for their earlier behaviour.

It was a fear that was proven mercifully unfounded.

"Yes, Mr Weasley," he continued smoothly, slicing his wand through the air to silence the howl of the wind. "You did indeed hear me correctly. This tower was destroyed by dragons.

"These stones," he waved an arm towards the pile of time-worn rubble, "are all that remain of a great tower that Vortigern, one of the earliest muggle Kings of Britain, was trying to erect some fifteen hundred years ago.

"You see, Vortigern had tried many times, but the before the tower could be completed, the ground would quake and the tower would collapse. His wise men told him that the only solution was to sprinkle the foundation with the blood of a child born without a father; only then would the ground remain still enough for the tower to be completed.

"Merlin, rumoured to be such a child, was therefore brought before him," Dolan continued, apparently quite enjoying the undivided attention he now received in response to his tale. "Now, why a wizard of Merlin's prowess did not merely apparate away from his captors, history does not record, however, we do know that Merlin instead chose to reveal the true cause of the tower's collapse to them: below the castle lay a cavern which housed two dragons, their violent battles continually rocking the land and thus destroying the tower before it could ever be completed - the locals still call it Merlin's cave to this day."

"And do you think there are still any dragons here now, sir?" asked Charlie, a familiar look of longing in his eyes: he had been fascinated with dragons for as long as Tonks had known him.

"Don't be foolish, boy," snapped Dolan, his features quite suddenly morphing back into the look of disdain he usually reserved for students. "Even a creature as long-lived as a dragon would have turned to dust centuries ago. Besides, the Ministry has classified all dragons as extremely dangerous – there isn't a beast alive today that the Ministry doesn't know the exact location of at all times."

Whilst clearly a knowledgable man, Dolan's obvious dislike of children made him ill-suited to a position instructing them, and as such he had quickly become one of most hated figures at the school – perhaps only beaten into second place by the vindictive head of Slytherin House, Professor Snape.

Hardly a night went by in which Tonks did not wish that the curse that was rumoured to surround the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts would strike again – it was often the only thought that got her through his lesson – and it was that thought again that allowed her to stay in control of her temper as Dolan's stinging remark hit home and washed the enthusiasm that had been etched onto her best friend's features away in an instant: she had learnt through bitter experience that allowing her metamorphic abilities to manifest themselves in Professor Dolan's class, even unintentionally, only served to antagonise the man.

"Hey," she whispered under her breath once they had resumed walking towards the next item of interest on their tour. "Do you fancy sneaking back in here tonight? See if we can't find those dragon caves … "

Charlie's face lit up. "Do you mean it?" came his eager reply.

In truth, Tonks didn't much fancy running into a dragon in the dead of night – in fact, as much as she hated Dolan, she believed that he _was_ right about at least one thing: there was no way any being made of flesh and bone, no matter how powerful, could have survived for more than a millennia.

Nevertheless, knowing that only the prospect of seeing a dragon in the flesh would be enough to persuade the occasionally uptight Charlie Weasley to deliberately break the rules, Tonks offered her best friend a single shy nod by way of response. The opportunity to spend some time alone with the boy who had befriended her in their very first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson nearly five years ago would offer her the perfect moment to admit something that she had only become aware of in the last few months; an opportunity to find out if he felt the same way about her as she now realised she felt about him.

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The sun had long since set over the rocky bay when Charlie and Tonks emerged from the rooms the school had procured for them at the town's only hotel. Both wore their school robes over their muggle clothing, and, in an effort to further disappear into the night, Tonks had even gone so far as to alter her hair colour to an inky black, indistinguishable from the dark landscape which surrounded them.

Fortune smiled on them: no one saw them as they hurried along the headland and the clouds (which until that moment had been streaking their way across the full moon and camouflaging their flight) parted at the opportune moment and lit their way down the rough steps, hewn directly into the rock.

By day, the late April sunshine had proven more than adequate to stave off the chill of the powerful breeze pushing in from the Atlantic, but now, with the warmth of the day but a memory, Tonks found herself thanking her lucky stars for the winds cooling effects: she felt quite certain that without it's mitigating properties her hand would have grown unpleasantly clammy, ensconced in Charlie's as, arm stretched out behind him, he led her down the winding stone staircase in silence.

They had held hands countless times in the past, she was sure, but it was different now – she was different now. Not wishing to damage their friendship, all year she had held her tongue, but tonight she had to tell him – how could she not when the truth was staring her in the face every time she looked at him.

Her thoughts elsewhere, Tonks, unsighted in the dark, did not notice that Charlie had come to an abrupt halt, a strangled, unintelligible exclamation tearing past his lips as she bumped into him and sent him swaying unsteadily on the final step which still stood a good ten feet off the ground.

"Where are the steps?" squeaked Tonks as she made an instinctive grab for his waist, which, coupled with his years of quidditch honed reflexes, saved him from toppling over the edge of the cliff.

"Washed away, I guess," offered Charlie with a laconic shrug as he used her firm grip on his body as a counter balance and peered over the edge. "I'm going to have to jump," he announced a moment later.

Before Tonks could even so much as part her lips to protest, Charlie shrugged off her grip and launched himself into the air, landing with a wet squelch on the waterlogged beach below a heartbeat or so later.

"Now you," he shouted as he righted himself and held his arms at the ready to arrest her momentum.

Having never had much of a head for heights, her mouth suddenly felt very dry as she peered over the sheer edge of the cliff. "I'm not sure this is a good - "

Whatever else she intended to say was swallowed up by her yelp of fright as she lost her footing on the slimy rock and tumbled over the edge.

Landing on Charlie with far less grace than had been her intention, the force of her fall sent them them both sprawling to the ground where they landed in a heap, his face mere inches from hers.

She blinked stupidly as she assimilated the compromising nature of their positions, her cheeks immediately burning crimson as she recognised exactly where her hips had landed. "I – I – I'm so sorry, Charlie," she stammered, pushing herself to her feet and making a show of dusting the sand from her clothes just so that she would have something to do with her hands that she had suddenly become very conscious of: _How have I never noticed how stupid my arms look just hanging at my sides?_

"Don't mention it," winced Charlie as he too pushed himself upright. "What are friends for?..."

Briefly catching her eye, Charlie's words trailed away and in a manner that Tonks could never recall experiencing around her best friend, time seemed to stretch awkwardly. Perhaps some of what was running through her mind was visible on her face.

"Is that - is that it, do you think?" she said at length. "Merlin's Cave, I mean," she added, clearing her throat in a way she feared was obviously faked. _What's wrong with me?!_

"Must be," replied Charlie, his gaze shifting around in a very uncharacteristic manner. "Shall we?" he added gesturing towards the caverns vaguely circular entrance.

Grateful for a reason to end their awkward exchange, the two friends moved stealthily along the beach, their trainers making barely a sound on the compacted sand. Soon they had moved beneath the canopy of rock, the moon light's influence dimming with each step thereafter, until neither could see more than a few feet in any direction causing both to light their wands simultaneously.

"I guess Dolan was right," said Tonks as her eyes adjusted to the pulsating glow, her voice sounding high pitched and nervous to her own ears. "There's nothing here," she added as she passed her wand light from one side of the cave to the other. "Perhaps we should get going - "

But Charlie obviously wasn't listening to her. "Hey! What's this?" he wondered aloud, moving his wand light to and fro over a particular patch of sand.

"It's just a water channel," suggested Tonks, directing her own wand light towards the groove worn into the caverns soft floor.

"No, look," declared Charlie, his voice carrying with it an unmistakable hint of excitement. "The groove goes right up against this wall and then stops."

Tonks felt her eyebrows reach for the ceiling of rock high overhead. "There's nothing unusual about an underground stream."

"But that's just it," continued Charlie emphatically, "there's no evidence of water action like there was at the bottom of the steps. This wasn't caused by any tidal stream. This is the mark left by a dragon's tail dragging along the ground – I know, I've seen pictures," he added.

"So what? The dragon just disappeared into a solid wall?" Her attempt at nonchalance sounded forced even to her own ears: she was beginning to worry that there really was something that still called Merlin's Cave home.

"Maybe it's not a wall at all," postulated Charlie, oblivious to Tonks' discomfort. "It could be an illusion left behind by Merlin himself, or a maybe a distraction charm of some sort, or a - "

Charlie's excited ramble was cut off by a horrific sound that started out low, like the howl of the wind that sill rushed past the mouth of the cave at their backs, and quickly rose to a deafening roar.

Dual beams of light swung in the direction of the terrifying noise, the luminescent beams of their lit wands falling on the unmistakable form of an ancient, but nonetheless deadly dragon.

The passage of time had turned many of its green scales slate grey and its eyes were a milky white, but blind though it was, the scent of two tasty morsels who had so willingly stumbled into its lair had drawn it closer to the surface than it had been in a great many years and it sniffed at the air hungrily.

Despite herself a squeak of fear slipped past Tonks' lips. "Charlie?" she hissed, wishing she had paid more attention during Care of Magical Creatures. "What should we do?"

Having studied the species extensively, Charlie had no such doubts about their next course of action. "RUN!" he bellowed and grabbed her by the hand just it time to pull her out of the way as the dragon belched a surprisingly well aimed fireball in their general direction.

Even without looking behind, Tonks could sense that the dragon was in pursuit; the enormous creature's thunderous footfalls shook the cave so violently that she had no trouble believing Dolan's story about the tower from earlier that day.

"GET DOWN!" yelled Charlie and he threw them both to the ground behind a large boulder which instantly flared white hot, flames licking around its edges, as the dragon continued to use its remaining senses to excellent effect.

Panting hard, Tonks assessed their options and found them to be worryingly few. They couldn't fight - she knew enough of dragons to be certain that even if they were both fully qualified they didn't stand a chance. They couldn't stay where they were - even blinded by cataracts the winged monster was still a formidable hunter: it would find them sooner rather than later. Their only option was to make a dash for the cave's opening, fifty meters directly ahead of them: almost certainly a suicide run given how quickly the dragon had proven it could locate them utilising only it's remaining senses.

This was it; they were going to die down here, and she was never going to get to tell him how she felt.

_Unless_ ...

Words were a luxury she didn't have time for; summoning every ounce of her courage, Tonks turned to face Charlie, his face red from exertion, and quickly closed the distance between them. Tentatively at first, she pressed her lips against his, but kept her eyes open so that she could have her answer one way or the other.

Instantly Charlie's eyes widened in shock and her heart sank like a stone – _He doesn't feel the same – _but almost before that nascent thought could fully coalesce within her mind, her heart reversed course and settled somewhere near her throat as Charlie's eyes slid shut and he reciprocated in kind.

If only for a moment.

Unable to locate its quarry, the dragon reared up onto its rear legs in frustration, its deafening roar promptly pulling them back to reality and breaking their tryst.

Not wishing to give away their precise location by vocalising her desire to make a run for it, Tonks made sure Charlie followed her eye line towards the cave's jagged opening and snapped her chin down once in confirmation as understanding blossoming in his pale blue eyes.

Holding up the fingers of one hand to signify a countdown, she coiled the muscles of her legs under her, ready to run harder than at any point in her life as she lowered each one in turn:

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

"STUPEFY!"

A new voice rang out within the confines of the cave and both of the trapped teenager's gazes snapped up to find the voice of their would-be saviour; a voice that managed to drown out the roar of the dragon as it recoiled under the onslaught of his powerful stunner.

Like looking up from the belly of some sort of stone beast, the imposing but completely unmistakable form of Albus Dumbledore, his long beard whipping about his shoulders in the strong wind, stood silhouetted in the open maw of the cave's mouth.

"Both of you would be wise to get behind me." His voice was calm, conversational even, but his eyes blazed with commingled fury and concern. "Quickly please," he added when neither made to move.

Not needing to be told twice, Tonks and Charlie sprinted towards safety, the headmaster laying down cover fire over their heads to keep the incensed dragon at bay.

"How did you - " Tonks started to ask, but the headmaster cut across her.

"As fascinating as I'm sure you would find my answer, Miss Tonks, I fear there is little time for explanation. Please, take this," he added, pulling out a dog's chew toy from within the folds of his robes whereupon he extended it so that both Charlie and Tonks could grasp one end each as he intoned a single word: _Portus_.

"Suffice it to say," he continued apparently choosing to ignore his own counsel, "I believe we once again find ourselves requiring a new Defence Against the Darks Arts teacher. Mr Dolan has proven himself sadly lacking in his duty to account for the whereabouts of the students in his care."

With that, he tapped the dog toy once more and Tonks immediately felt a familiar jerk behind her navel and when she was released she found herself standing before an door who's threshold she had crossed on more occasions than she cared to remember - _Professor Sprout's._

"Crap," she whispered as she recalled one of her father's favourite muggle expressions: out of the frying pan and into the fire.

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An hour later, an exasperated Pomona Sprout dismissed her from her sanctum and Tonks immediately made her way to the deputy headmistress's office where she now waited for her best friend – _boyfriend?_ – to emerge.

Despite the evident disappointment etched into the feature's of her head-of-house, the herbology professor had at least informed her that Dumbledore had returned to the castle unharmed and been able to incapacitate the dragon which would be transferred to a sanctuary before sunrise. That, and her confirmation that Professor Dolan was to be discharged from his post had lifted her spirits enough to get her through the lecture on proper behaviour and decorum she then had to endure.

How long she had sat waiting for Charlie, she could not say, but finally, with her eyes feeling like they were being weighed down by tiny parcels of lead and the sky beyond the window she sat opposite just beginning to bruise towards morning, Tonks heard the handle to Professor McGonagall's office twist, and she looked up just in time to see a shame-faced Charlie Weasley emerge into the deserted corridor.

"Well?" prompted Tonks, the muscles of her back protesting vociferously as she pushed to her feet after a long period of inactivity.

"Detention for a month," he said sliding his hand into hers as they picked a direction at random and began to walk. "I'm also suspended from the last quidditch game of the season, and McGonagall says she'll be writing to my parents first thing in the morning."

"So not too bad then?" grinned Tonks and she gave him playful shove to his ribs as she thought of her own seemingly endless list of punishments for her most recent indiscretion. However, and to her eternal surprise, Charlie's mouth did not quirk into a matching grin, his features instead taking on a more thoughtful countenance.

"Yeah," he said after a beat his gaze slipping towards their conjoined hands. "Not too bad at all."

Now he did smile and it was smile that caused Nymphadora's hair to flush red from its roots to its very tips.

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_**Fin**_

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_**Author Musings -** I hoped you enjoyed it. It was my first time __writing for this ship. I hope I found their voices. If you want to check out my competitor's stories you can head here: s/9217630/1/Iron-Fic-Charlie-and-Tonks-See-the-Sig hts_

_Personally I thought they were both excellent, but don't take my word for it, go and have a look for yourself. (Of Roman Baths was written by Bad Mum and For Extra Credit was written by Snarky64.)_

_Oh, and for any one waiting on an update on my multi-chapter fics. I haven't forgotten them, I am just completely stuck on both of them :-/_


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